Employees collaborate on workspace design at new ‘green’ building in South Fayette
Grading work is in progress for the eventual construction of the Beacon 1 office building in South Fayette Township.
Conceptual rendering for Beacon 1
The concept of “two for one” sometimes isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be.
Take a look at the signpost on top of the hill in South Fayette Township’s Abele Business Park, and you’ll see two separate listings in a pair of different buildings for financial planning and management firm Waldron Private Wealth.
Across the street, though, construction has started on what will become the company’s headquarters, atop a four-story, 80,000-square-foot building called Beacon 1.
“Logistically, it’s going to make it a lot easier for us,” Ryan Fortier, director of operations, said about the new structure, which is targeted for completion in the summer of 2017.
That applies to facets other than everyone being under the same roof.
“When I founded Waldron, I knew the key to creating a great client experience was to provide my team with an environment that fostered creative and collaborative thinking,” John Waldron, chief executive officer, explained.
As such, the company’s 30-plus staff members have been exercising their creativity while collaborating on the design of the headquarters by providing a substantial amount of input to address their needs in better serving clients.
For example, everyone in the firm answered a survey of 20 questions, along the lines of: “Where you do spend most of your time?” and “What do you need in a workspace?” Also, staff members have had the opportunity to meet in small groups to provide ideas for the project’s architect.
In response, some of the priorities include enhancing teleconferencing and audio-visual capabilities, and establishing shared workspaces where employees can work together more efficiently.
Meanwhile, energy efficiency is prominent in the design of the overall building, with Green Tree-based developer Burns and Scalo Real Estate Services Inc. adding Beacon 1 to its list of locations that have been received Class-G, as in “green,” certification for sustainability.
Fortier said that plans call for covering 60 percent of the roof with solar panels to supplement the structure’s power supply, along with using low-emissivity coatings to reduce the emission of radiant infrared energy.
A substantial amount of the building materials are sustainable and locally sourced, cutting down on fuel consumption during transportation to the site. Other features include low-flow plumbing, LED lighting, sensors to control lighting automatically, and the use of bamboo siding.
Another possibility is the presence of a vehicle charging station, according to Fortier, who noted that the company’s president, Matthew Helfrich, drives an electric car.
“We’re really looking forward to this,” Fortier said about Beacon 1. “It’s exciting for our company.”